Windows Live gets the Windows 8 Treatment, suddenly looks appealing

With Windows 8 being shown off at Microsoft’s Build Conference today, we also got a quick preview of what Windows Live will look like within the Windows 8 world. Whether the changes will filter down to non-Windows 8 users is currently unknown, but we like the direction in which Windows Live is heading because let’s face it, it currently looks quite dull. We prefer using Gmail over Hotmail for instance because it’s visually more appealing, simpler to use and has a cleaner interface. Well step aside Gmail because Hotmail is kicking down to ‘good looks’ door with some visually appealing changes, all suited to Windows 8.

There are a couple things that we were able to see on Windows Live, and they are the following:

Calendar:

The Windows Live Calendar has taken on a completely new look from the old, and has once again taken on a Metro UI look. Much like Windows Phone 7’s currently have, but with lot’s more colour, we like the look of this of this Calendar much more. This seems like a Calendar we would actually use daily, and we figure the colour is customizable as well.

Photos:

Photo’s take on a completely different look to what you will currently find on Windows 7. We think the tile concepts makes the most sense in Photo’s and it clearly shows in the screenshot above. It’s a fantastic looking design interface in Windows 8, and it’s no exception in the Pictures (hub?). Furthermore, all the pictures will be stores in Sky Drive, Microsoft’s Cloudthey will be easy to access and share with anyone from the photo’s (or People).

Hotmail:

Windows Live mail aka Hotmail probably has had the most change (arguably) to it from the current model. It’s clean, crisp, and it looks like an absolute delight to use here (unlike the current iteration). It looks so simple to use and it makes us want to use this email client, and that’s probably the first time in a very long time, that we’ve said that about Hotmail so well done Microsoft!

Windows 8 will also allow you to login via your Windows Live account, meaning any settings and other personal choices on your device will automatically be transferred to the current device you’re using. What does this mean? Well, it means that wherever you go you can basically have all your stuff with you (we assume personal documents and apps as well)! It’s a great concept, and great to see Microsoft investing more into the Cloud System.

That’s all the announcements from Build Day 1. We’ll be back with more from Build Day 2!

Founder and Chief Editor of Techin5, currently based in Melbourne Australia. Has always had a deep appreciation of Technology and how it helps people, which led to the birth of Techin5. You can follow me on Twitter at @jubbing and on Instagram